Tosh Farrell Soccer Magazine June 2020 | Page 21

What advice would you give to any coaches starting on the coaching journey. First let me say how difficult it is for the coaches of today. The opportunities and access to top coaches like we had in the days of AFCAT have gone. I remember practically stalking Don Howe. I was at every session he did, so much so that Don said to me it was his ambition to run a course which I did not attend! Coaches were more open when I was coming through and would tell you about how they did things and the decisions they made. These were fantastic learning opportunities for young coaches. To this day I have got every session I have ever done written down and stored away. I would evaluate my sessions and give myself an honest assessment of how the session went, was the area too big or too small, was the session appropriate, did I make the conditions too hard, how would I do that the next time? Evaluating your work honestly is very important, but in my opinion planning a session is more important. I would, and still do, spend hours preparing the session. How I was going to do the session, what players would I focus on, how would this affect other players? I am always studying the game and I remember watching Spartak Moscow at Ewood many years ago. They were using the wall pass to great effect, and after the game I went home and devised a session on wall passing and all the options it gave the team. Planning time is something today’s coaches don’t get enough time to do. I would also advise young coaches to avoid the jargon. Concentrate on the small details, break the session down. The angle of the pass, the timing of the pass, the weight of the pass, when, where and how to support, how does the want the ball? Where he is or where he is going. These are the details the players need and to be blunt, aim the session at the best players, raise the bar and plan your work around the best player. Some coaches are wrapped up in fancy drills, all bells and whistles which look good but how much information are the players really taking away from the session?